"Slough" is a ten-stanza poem by

Sir John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

, first published in his 1937 collection '' Continual Dew''. The British town of

Slough Slough () is a town in Berkshire, England, in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4, M40 and M25 motorways. It is part of the historic county of Buckinghamshire. In 2021, the ...

was used as a dump for war surplus materials in the interwar years, and then abruptly became the home of 850 new factories just before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The sudden appearance of this "

Trading Estate An industrial park, also known as industrial estate or trading estate, is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more heavyweight version of a business park or office park, ...

", which was quickly widely reproduced throughout Britain, prompted the poem. Seeing the new appearance of the town, Betjeman was struck by the "menace of things to come". He later regretted the poem's harshness. The poem is not about Slough specifically, but about the desecration caused by industrialization and modernity in general, with the transformation of Slough being the epitome of these evils. Nevertheless, successive mayors of Slough have objected to the poem. The poem was published two years before the outbreak of

, during which Britain (including Slough itself) experienced actual air raids. Much later, in a guide to English churches, Betjeman referred to some churches as "beyond the tentacles of Slough" and "dangerously near Slough". However, on the centenary of Betjeman's birth in 2006, his daughter apologised for the poem.

Candida Lycett Green Candida Rose Lycett Green (''née'' Betjeman; 22 September 194219 August 2014) was a British author who wrote sixteen books including ''English Cottages'', ''Goodbye London'', ''The Perfect English House'', ''Over the Hills and Far Away'' and ' ...

said her father "regretted having ever written it". During her visit, Lycett Green presented Mayor of Slough David MacIsaac with a book of her father's poems. In it was written: "We love Slough".

Responses

In 2005,

Ian McMillan Ian McMillan may refer to: * Ian MacMillan (author) (1941–2008), Hawaiian scholar and novelist * Ian McMillan (curler) (born 1991), Canadian curler * Ian McMillan (footballer) (1931–2024), Scottish footballer *Ian McMillan (poet) Ian McMill ...

published a poem titled "Slough Re-visited" using the same metre and rhyme-scheme as Betjeman's original, but celebrating Slough and rejecting mockery of the town as unfair. Punk band

Gallows A gallows (or less precisely scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sa ...

, who originally formed in Slough, and whose singer Frank Carter has frequently expressed his dislike for the town in interviews, have several references to Betjeman's poem in their music: their album ''

Orchestra of Wolves ''Orchestra of Wolves'' is the debut album by English hardcore punk band Gallows. It was produced by Banks of fellow Hertfordshire band Haunts and released by In at the Deep End Records on 25 September 2006. A limited edition was re-issued in t ...

'' features a song entitled "Come Friendly Bombs", and an earlier song entitled "Swarm Over Death" (released on the band's 2005 demo) features the lyrics "Come friendly bombs/ And fall here now/ It isn't fit for humans now/ Swarm over death". In the television series ''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

'', which is set in Slough, the character

David Brent David Brent is a fictional character in the BBC television mockumentary ''The Office'', portrayed by the show's co-creator, co-writer, and co-director Ricky Gervais. Brent is a white-collar office middle-manager and the principal character of t ...

(portrayed by

Ricky Gervais Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, television producer and filmmaker. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003) ...

), reads extracts of the poem interjected with comments such as "You don't solve town planning problems by dropping bombs all over the place, so he's embarrassed himself there, next." The poem is reproduced in full on the liner of the video and DVD releases of the series, and a more complete reading was included in deleted scenes released in 2011.

References

External links

*{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108204809/http://www-cdr.stanford.edu/intuition/Slough.html, date=8 November 2020, title=Slough English poems Slough Poem 1937 poems Poetry by John Betjeman